Colorado west from the Kansas border is a prairie mostly as nature intended it — vast swaths of grass, wildflowers and cactus punctuated by cottonwoods every now and again. But then comes the Front Range, where the landscape begins to change — elms and maples, ash trees and honey locusts, lacy with blossoms in spring, heavy with apples in summer, and bright leaves in the fal...

"Colorado west from the Kansas border is a prairie mostly as nature intended it --- vast swaths of grass, wildflowers and cactus punctuated by cottonwoods every now and again."

Has Douglas Brown ever been to eastern Colorado or even looked at it on Google Earth? Most of it is not virgin prairie, it's cultivated farm fields planted with a very limited variety of crops. There's nothing wrong with that, but it's silly to pretend people dont use most of the land in eastern Colorado.

"Colorado west from the Kansas border is a prairie mostly as nature intended it"

Absolutely not a true statement. I know it looks that way to the untrained eye, but the native shortgrasses that once dominated the prairies are now replaced with grasses tailored to livestock. The wildflowers are all too often invasive, often noxious. Water that once trickled through small streams, creating riparian corridors, is diverted for crop cultivation and livestock. Wideopen stretches are now punctuated by fences.

"It's an artificial forest of species imported from elsewhere, a canopy created by humans who long for shade and will do most anything to get it."

Using "it" twice in one sentence is terrible writing, (frankly, using "it" once in a sentence is terrible for a professional writer) but set that aside for a minute. . .does the author lament the artificial forest of imported species? Obviously not, he turns around and creates a list of imported trees from elsewhere, with a couple of evergreen natives tacked on at the end.

I just wish nurseries would concentrate on selling plants and trees that thrive in this climate. When I see azaleas, philodendrones, and hydrangea for sale at even the better nurseries I get depressed. Yes I'm sure there's a person that can make these work but generally it's a waste of money and water to force them to acclimate. The nurseries, Home Depot, etc should mark or segregate plants that are or are not suitable for this unique climate.